Steve Sarkisian, the new University of Washington football coach, has been called to task for the heinous crimes of having a fog machine turned on when recruits toured Husky Stadium, for allowing a junior to attend a recruiting meeting and, horror or horrors, for allowing a reporter attend that meeting.

The NCAA no doubt is petitioning to keep Guantanamo open so Sarkisian can be shipped there.

Welcome to the fast lane, Steve.

What has happened is at the same time an example of how the NCAA rules can be a comic book, how coaches need to be ever vigilant to avoid even the slightest perception of running rogue operations and everything between these distant positions.

It’s a joke that turning on a fog machine is a no-no because “game-day simulations” are against the law.

Except a rule is a rule is a rule.

Remember, the reason for rules, even the silly ones, is because some creative or conniving coach (it depends on your point of view) did something that prompted another coach to complain, prompting the writing of said rule.

This is a lot more complicated for Sarkisian than his previous life, first as a quarterback at West Torrance High, El Camino College, BYU and with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and then as an assistant coach at ECC, USC, the Raiders and back again at USC.

What happened when Sarkisian and defensive coordinator Nick Holt showed up for a meeting with Los Angeles Jordan High coach Elijah Asante and two of his players was a joke of another kind.

Asante also invited the junior. And he either invited or agreed to allow the reporter to attend. All available information indicates Sarkisian and Holt were not informed in advance about the two additional guests.

Sarkisian has been unavailable for comment for several days, quite probably under orders from the UW suits, in their lack of infinite wisdom, which leaves us to come to our own conclusions.

By instituting a gag order, Sarkisian appears to be a young, rookie head coach who does not have a clue, is in over his head or willingly flaunts rules. Or all of the preceding.

Washington has a history for violations. Rick Neuheisel, now UCLA’s coach, was notorious for playing games with rules. He even was censored by the American Football Coaches Association. Rules were shredded when Don James was the coach. Legend has it that L.A. Washington High star running back Hugh McElhenny became a U of W star because his girlfriend was given a scholarship.

Park of Sarkisian’s problem is lack of an adequate support system. Washington’s athletic director Scott Woodward is a veteran political consultant with no previous experience in college athletic administration.

Instead of telling Sarkisian not to order a cup of coffee without calling to make sure doing so is not crunching some obscure rule, instead of anticipating problems and preventing them from happening, Woodward is doing what he’s been trained to do. He’s crafting statements after the fact.

The Huskies have proclaimed their intention to run a clean program. That’s why they hired Tyrone Willingham in 2005.

Willingham was clean. He also was winless in his last 14 games. That’s why he became the former Washington coach.

So Sarkisian comes in and wows Seattle with energy and enthusiasm in contrast to the dour Willingham.

It’s easy to suggest Asante, who comes off as self-serving, and Ben Bolch, a former Daily Breeze sports reporter now with the Los Angeles Times, ambushed Sarkisian, that Sarkisian found himself in a no-win situation in which he decided not to embarrass or insult coach, prospects and reporter.

No excuses allowed. Sarkisian can’t shrug and say these were minor violations, no different than jaywalking. He was wrong. He had to draw a line. He had to kick Bolch out of the meeting. He had to gently but firmly ask the prospect to leave. Or he and Holt had to leave.

The alternative was the mess he finds himself in with headlines such as “Is Sark too slick? He acts like Rick.”

That’s life in the fast lane, Slick, ah, Steve.

Clearing out the notebook …

Update: It’s Nick Sanchez Jr., the Sanchez brother who is an attorney and a former Yale quarterback, who is associated with agent David Dunn, and will represent baby brother Mark when Mark enters the NFL.

Opinion: Good for the Dodgers for showing discipline in holding the financial line and not bidding against themselves for the services of Manny Ramirez.

Scouting report: Ben Roethlisberger’s ability to fight off would-be tacklers and pass the football brings back memories of Roman Gabriel standing tall and tough in the pocket for the old Los Angeles Rams.

Bottom line: Former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda did not win fans last week after the Stanford-

USC basketball game when he had a guard commandeer an elevator for him in the parking structure so Lasorda could get to his car while others waited in line.